CBHMA President’s Message Winter 2012
Mike O'Keefe, President
Dear CBHMA members,
Before the formal announcement of her new assignment, I had the pleasure of speaking with Little Big Horn Battlefield Superintendent Kate Hammond by phone. She advised me that the weather at the park has been relatively mild this winter, although a ten-inch snowfall closed Interstate 90 for two days.
Due to the deterioration of the Battlefield’s Tour Road and severe parking limitations during the peak visitor times, the National Park Service has initiated a feasibility study of alternative transportation systems that has solicited public comment. The goal of this important initiative is to improve visitor experiences at the Battlefield while preserving the historical and natural assets of the National Monument. For further details, please refer to the article on this study in the Winter issue of The Battlefield Dispatch.
In pursuit of this goal, park staff is finalizing a new orientation film for visitors. Several of us have had the opportunity to preview and comment on this well done revision. A new ADA compliant front desk at the Visitor Center has been completed. Supt. Hammond has informed me that it is much improved for both staff and visitors.
On behalf of the CBHMA Board of Directors and our 1300 members, I wish to congratulate Supt. Hammond on her recent promotion to superintendent of Valley Forge National Historical Park.
The Association appreciates her constructive, proactive initiative in addressing the critical management issues at Little Bighorn Battlefield in an inclusive manner that has involved all those who have a commitment to the historic legacy of the park and its future. In working to achieve such long-term permanent solutions, she has contributed to the long delayed realization of a new Visitor Center and the implementation of the other goals of the Battlefield’s 1986/1995 General Management Plan.
We offer our best wishes to Supt. Hammond as she faces the challenges and opportunities of her new assignment. Pennsylvania’s gain is clearly Montana’s loss!
We also look forward to working closely with her replacement as well as other stakeholders so as to continue and sustain the positive momentum towards the solution of these serious infrastructure issues at the National Monument.
The last meeting between the park staff, Crow tribal leaders and Custer Battlefield Preservation Committee (CBPC) occurred before the holidays and no date as of this writing has been set for the next session. Although there has been no agreement as to the donation and disposition of CBPC land to the Battlefield, the Committee has requested that the President and the Montana Congressional delegation sponsor enabling legislation towards this addition to the park’s landscape. The CBPC’s letter is posted on our website.
Funds that the CBHMA donated to the Battlefield last summer might be used to acquire new section markers in Custer National Cemetery. A decision on this use, however, has not been made as of this date.
Many of us viewed the PBS American Experience broadcast Custer’s Last Stand on January 17. For the most part this interesting program adequately explored and judged the controversial personality of George Armstrong Custer and his impact on the nation’s history.
Commentator Paul Hutton eloquently placed the subject in proper context by noting that the legacy of Custer and Little Big Horn “symbolizes all the things that make us uncomfortable with American history.” That legacy raises the fundamental question of what was “the cost” to become the United States. Other familiar faces who participated in the broadcast included authors Louise Barnett, Michael Elliot, Nathaniel Philbrick and Shirley Leckie Reed as well as former Battlefield Supt. Gerard Baker.
Our editors have received several diverse yet valuable comments on this provocative presentation. In the spirit of constructive dialogue, they welcome additional comments (pro and con) from members.
“Seventh Heaven” will soon be here again in Hardin. Symposium presentations again promise to be interesting and entertaining. Our Field Trip will provide the opportunity to visit the site of Lakota Sun Dance where Sitting Bull envisioned “soldiers falling upside down into camp” before the Little Big Horn.
Please make plans to join us at this year’s CBHMA conference. You’ll be glad that you did!
Mike